Our hand held
lights flickered against the cool walls of the tunnel as we
traversed the first fifteen feet of Dawn Mine in a
crouched position. With the low stony roof and watery floor one
is constantly forced to be aware of their position. We proceeded
with a slow and shambling pace into the damp darkness towards
what appeared to be an island. Two ancient square beams grew from
the mound of soil that made the island and though these beams
stopped around waist level, I imagine they at one time provided
some means of support in the tunneling process.

The tunnel roof opened up above us, a shaft
climbing to the height of over fifty feet, and going, who knew
where. It was a wormhole of
sorts to another world in these underground possessions. On the
right of our position another tunnel veered off in a northerly
direction. In the entry to this branch the floor again appeared
to be water logged and though not plainly perceptible at first,
it had the look of peril in the greatest degree. With lamp in
hand I maneuvered two steps closer towards this watery entrance.
My lamp finally reached its mark, fully engulfing the water
filled manhole that lay before me. The site of this watery grave
jerked my feet to such an abrupt halt, that I almost went head
over heels into this great abyss.

My
fearless friends foreseeing my potential predicament grabbed onto
my jacket and jerked me back a step. A gesture I was most
beholden for as we peered on bent knees into the drenched depths
of what was later found to be fifty-five feet deep. My friends
and I backed up onto the safety of the island and then pressed
onward into another tunnel that led off to the west. This tunnel
proceeded in for a distance of one hundred fifty feet or so, with
numerous side passages of lesser extent to explore.

Deep in the folds of this subterranean domain
when the wet walls bluntly came to an end, my friends and I
pondered the fate of those with no lamp to light there way and so
extinguished all sources of our luminance. In the black
nothingness around us the only sounds we were to hear were the
echoes of water droplets hitting the occasional puddle on the
tunnel floor and the sporadic clearing of ones throat when one
feels the insecurities of this black netherworld.

Lamps again lit we headed back to the island
and one last look into the murky depths of the water filled
shaft. Looking out towards the tunnel entrance, a glad and yellow
sunshine was striving to gain admittance and so we raced across
the waterlogged planks that lined the floor to give it a full and
proper greeting. Once fully in its presence, we stretched and
strutted in its warmth, til we had our fill and then sat in
the shade of the giant oaks to snack and reflect upon our visit
to the depths of Dawn Mine.